There was an incredibly high sense of urgency when Purdue basketball legend Zach Edey returned for his senior season in 2023-24, and ultimately, the program reached the national championship game for the first time in 55 years. Matt Painter and company entered this season with similar pressure surrounding them. With Braden Smith, Trey Kaufman-Renn and Fletcher Loyer all still on the roster, it is once again Final Four or bust for the Boilermakers. Right now, though, the operative word is bust.
No. 12 Purdue continued its recent struggles in Big Ten play and suffered a 72-67 upset loss to Indiana on Tuesday night. Defensive lapses remain the theme of the month, as the team squandered a late comeback opportunity by giving up a 3-pointer to Conor Enright. Indiana scored 40 points in the first half and shot 46 percent for the game.
The Boilermakers mounted even less resistance in its previous two contests, allowing both UCLA and Illinois to shoot 45 percent or better from behind the 3-point line. They lost all three games by a combined 13 points. Painter knows his squad should have won at least two of those matchups, but its defensive awareness and execution is limiting its ceiling.
“It gets frustrating … we have too good of a team,” he said regarding Purdue's scuffles, per Dustin Schutte of Purdue Boilermakers on SI.
Painter must get his guys to play a more physical brand of hoops, otherwise a national title will be completely out of reach. The preseason N0. 1 is turning into the team that other schools use to boost their NCAA Tournament résumé. Beating the Boilermakers is quickly losing its cachet, however. They look extremely vulnerable at the moment.
Fortunately, Purdue basketball (17-4) will have the opportunity to work out its issues against sub. 500 Maryland and Oregon over the next 10 days.
